QCP’s Evening of Fine Food a Big Success

Event raised over $120k for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities

By Jessica Meditz

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Queens Centers for Progress (QCP) welcomed the community to Terrace On The Park for their 26th annual “Evening of Fine Food.”

The event, held on March 15, boasted over 500 attendees and 40 food vendors for guests to sample from.

Wendy Gennaro, QCP’s director of development, said that this year’s event raised over $120,000, which will go toward educational and therapeutic services for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

“The goal of the event is to raise funds for our organization, which services people with intellectual and developmental disabilities in Queens,” Gennaro said. “Our mission is to promote the independence of people with disabilities so that they can live their best lives. We raise a good amount of money at the event that goes toward our programs.”

In the spirit of tradition, two “Chefs of the Year” were honored at the event — Rhonda Binda of MSG Entertainment and Thomas Rudzewick of Maspeth Federal Savings Bank.

Additionally, Drew Kerr of Queens Chef Project received the first ever Claire Schulman “Spirit of Community” award, in honor of Shulman, a former “Chef of the Year” and QCP supporter.

QCP also started a new partnership with GrubHub, which treated Queens families unable to attend the event to an evening of delightful dishes.

Guests also had the opportunity to participate in silent auctions, as well as enjoy entertainment from DJ Mike Kouros, comedian Suzanne Windland, magician Apollo Riego and Jim Altamore, a Frank Sinatra impersonator.

“No one has ever been disappointed with the atmosphere. There’s just such an energy to the event that just draws you in, and we work really hard to make that happen,” Gennaro said.

“We set the bar high every year, we try different things all the time and we always want to make it better,” she continued. “This year, we had quite the challenge ahead of us, but we’re very excited about bringing it back.”

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